Winter in Cali

The climate here is quite different from where either of us grew up - although living on Guam gave us our first tropical Christmas experiences.  It has "cooled" off a bit, especially at night, but we definitely were not looking for a white Christmas here this year.

 Our visit to CALM (California Living Museum)

 Esther's Christmas dresses ... 

Smiles

Just can't resist posting these super - cute smiles!

Loving the slide! 

Loving the dirt! 

Ready for Christmas!

Esther's Favorite Things

No joke - she plays every single day with one of the empty boxes we keep for her under the sink.  Simple pleasures!

Bakersfield, California

 I know it doesn't always work this way, but when the decision was made to leave Korea it was very clear.  Within a week Cory had a job offer here in Bakersfield, and though we tried to take some time before making the final decision, there wasn't much time to spare and it seemed evident that we were supposed to purchase a new home and embrace a new direction.

And so, here we are - just about 6 months later.  We are buying a home and moving in 2 weeks.  Many people have asked me if I (Jen) am adjusting to life back in America - to be honest I think it's been easier on me and Esther than on Cory.  I find that I am happy to be able to communicate clearly (most of the time) with others - a common language is rarely the issue!  I love going to the grocery store and being able to find ANY ingredient I am looking for, for ANY recipe I want to try out on my family!  I love being closer and more in touch with family - even texting back and forth throughout the day brings so much joy.  I love the idea that we are going to have our own home.

There are definitely things that we are finding difficult, but I feel like recently my 'cup' is overflowing.    

Moving ... Continued

In September we were able to move into an apartment.  We have been house hunting since we arrived in CA but it's been quite an interesting experience.  Esther wasn't sleeping through the night well and struggling with her naps, so we decided it might be best for us to go ahead and find an apartment until we could get into a house.  It was probably one of the easiest moves we've made - two trips with a minivan!  LOL - probably because we had almost no furniture to speak of.

As you can see, Esther likes the new place.  She is sleeping 10-12 hours a night and was taking two 2-hour naps a day when we first moved in!  She is slowly getting rid of the morning nap - it just kind of depends on what is going on for the day, but all in all she is sleeping so much better and is way more happy just about around the clock.  We are so grateful for our family taking us in for so long but I have to admit, it's awfully nice that Esther is back to a more normal sleeping schedule.

She loves sunglasses and cell phones.  This phone was one from Korea that made it back with us to the US.  She walks around "talking" on the phone - usually to Gig or Mimi!

We are ALMOST Caught Up!

 

So these are the last couple of pics from August that I'd like to share with you ...

 

 

While we were staying with Cory's brother and family Esther got a hold of this box and had a great time!  Apparently she is loving California oranges already!

 

 

I also (barely) managed to get her hair into a ponytail for the first time. 

For a mother I consider it a milestone!

Moving to California ...

After spending 2 extra weeks in West Virginia it was time for Esther and I to head out to CA to re-join Daddy.  We loved spending time with the Larkin side of the family, but it was time to get our family back together.

 

Cory did some apartment hunting before we arrived but with little success.  He couldn't get in to see an apartment before it was pre-rented ... and so his brother and sister in law were gracious enough to allow us to stay with them while we changed gears and started HOUSE hunting!

 

Esther LOVED living with her 2 cousins - Josh just turned 6 and Zoey is 6 months old.

 

 

 

 

 

It was so nice to get to spend time with Justin and Becca and their family - we've never lived on the same continent since being married or having kids.  We are loving having family so close by!

 

We recently did move into an apartment and are continuing the house hunt.  More to come about that another day!

Hanging out in WV

Cory, Esther, and I visited my parents in WV when we first got back to the States.  Cory had to leave after a week to start his new job but Esther and I stayed for another two.  We figured it would give Daddy a chance to settle in and we don't know how long til we visit the East Coast again. 

We enjoyed celebrating Mom and Dad's 40th wedding anniversary with them.  We (all the kids with some help from my Aunt Anita) threw them a surprise anniversary party but I didn't take my camera as there was a photographer there to take pics for us.

 

Esther officially started walking while there, just a few days before we left for California!

 

We also got to celebrate my Dad's 60th Birthday with him!

It was a summer to celebrate, for sure!  Both my parents celebrated big birthdays as well as their 40th wedding anniversary, and my mom, brother, sister in law and Cory all finished degrees of some sort.

Esther's First Birthday

 

Esther doesn't realize it yet, but she is blessed!  She turned one on June 22, 2012, but she celebrated that birthday more than 3 times! 

 

 

She first had a surprise party given to her (and me, Jen) by our CCS family in Korea in early June.  I didn't take a camera, so I don't have any pics myself, but Esther was given a Korean Hanbok, a gift certificate for professional studio photos, and her caretaker in Korea, Gramma Beth, made some amazing butterfly cupcakes!

 

 

Scattered through this post are some of the professional photos that were taken.

 

(Many more can be viewed on my facebook page.)

 

 

The night before her actual birthday we celebrated with our Bible Study group in Korea.  I made my 2nd attempt at a fondant cake - this time going for layers, covering each one and all the decorations out of fondant.  It was fun and I am definitely sold on the fondant.  Once we get settled I am going to be doing some more experimenting with that, I'm sure!

 

 

When we reached America Esther got to celebrate again!  This time we decided on an ice cream cake - and though I wish I hadn't chosen red icing, she LOVED it!

 

 

 

When we arrived in California Esther was showered with more gifts from the Dyck side of the family. 

 

Our little girl is 1 ... time sure does fly!

 

Hanging Out in WV

When we left Korea we headed to WV to visit the Larkin side of the family.

Esther enjoyed spending time with her cousin, Delevan, as you can see!

She also enjoyed her Aunt Mandy who walked her ALL OVER and helped her get mobile!

Look for more pics from WV with Gig and Grandpa coming soon!

Last Days in Korea

During our last 2 weeks in Korea we stayed at our friends' apartment ... they had already left for their summer vacation and were kind enough to allow us to stay at their place, which meant we could move totally out of our own apartment and have some time to relax a little before flying out for the last time.

We missed those dear friends, but as you can see, Esther enjoyed her time there!

We've Got Some Catching Up To Do!

Embarrassed isn't quite the right word to describe how I, Jen, feel about how long it has been since we've updated our blog.  However, circumstances in our lives have changed pretty dramatically since our last post, nearly 6 months ago and I'm fairly confident that I will be updating our blog much more frequently.  

For now, I'll give you a quick re-cap of the last 6 months and share some recent Esther pics with you.

As you know, Cory and I moved to Korea shortly after getting married in 2007.  We just finished our 5th year there, and it became very clearly to us that it was time for us to leave.  And now we are settling down in Bakersfield, CA.  Obviously there are a lot of missing details, but perhaps some of those can be shared another time.  

Within a week of deciding we would not be returning to Korea for another school year Cory found another job doing IT Support here in Bakersfield.  He's been there about 3 weeks now and seems to like it pretty well so far.  It is also allowing me to stay HOME with Esther.  We'd like to expand our family, we'll keep you posted.  I'd also like to pursue my Masters in Administration, but for now that's kind of on the back burner.  I'm trying to learn how to be a wife and mother while NOT working full time, and that will be an adjustment, I'm sure. 

I've got lots of pictures from the summer to share, but we are now working out of boxes and suitcases, so getting organized is taking some time.  I've never been on the West Coast before but am looking forward to settling down stateside for a while.  Cory has a brother, sister in law, a nephew and a niece here which is really nice.  The rest of the family is hours away, but still SO much closer than we've been!  This summer marks 10 years for me being out of the continental US, so I am preparing for some culture shock!  

Keep an eye out - I plan to update on a weekly basis.  We'll see how that goes!

Esther and Snickers

Esther loves to play with Snickers! I'm not sure what Snickers thinks ...

February Fun!

In February, we hosted a little party for Esther's new roommate! The Kirkpatrick's are teachers at our school and their new little boy, Ezra Jay, was born last Friday, March 16th! After Mrs. K's maternity leave he will be joining Esther in the nursery for the last month or so of school!

Mrs. K is from a family of Michigan fans, and Mr. K is Ohio State all the way! So, thanks to some creative cousins also in Korea, we came up with an Ohio State VS Michigan themed shower! Which will Baby K be a fan of? Only time will tell!

I thought it was hilarious when I found Esther just chilling out with her toys ...

She is still a huge fan of bath time!

And this is just the cutest face ever! It looks like "I got caught!"

Spring Break ... Time to Catch Up

YAY! SPRING BREAK!

So much has been going on the last few weeks! We have found ourselves in the midst of quite a few expected and unexpected circumstances ... from new babies to very sick staff, school facility issues to unexpected student needs, and much more!

In the midst of all of this, I have managed to snap some pictures here and there! Here are a few I thought you might enjoy.

Esther LOVES books!

Esther loves to play independently ...

Daddy's blue eyes ...